Expert Analysis

• SEC Crypto Custody Relief Offers Clarity For Funds

  

  A recent U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission staff letter supplies a workable path for registered investment advisers and funds seeking to offer crypto custody services by using state trust companies, and may portend additional useful guidance regarding crypto custody, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

• DC Circuit Charts Path On FERC Orders In Loper Bright Era

  

  The D.C. Circuit's recent decision in Solar Energy Industries Association v. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, upholding the agency's assessment of a power production facility's output, laid out an approach for addressing statutory interpretation in FERC appeals in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's game-changing Loper Bright decision, say attorneys at Bracewell.

• Steps For Healthcare Providers After Cigna ERISA Settlement

  

  Following the Cigna class action's settlement, where Employee Retirement Income Security Act violations arose from Cigna's online provider directory advertising providers as in-network who were actually out-of-network, providers should routinely audit their contract status and directory listings, and proactively coordinate with plans and payor partners, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

• DOJ's UnitedHealth Settlement Highlights New Remedies Tack

  

  The use of divestitures and Hart-Scott-Rodino Act compliance in the recent U.S. Department of Justice settlement with UnitedHealth Group and Amedisys underscores the DOJ Antitrust Division's willingness to utilize merger remedies under the second Trump administration, say attorneys at Buchanan Ingersoll.

• When Atty Ethics Violations Give Rise To Causes Of Action

  

  Though the Model Rules of Professional Conduct make clear that a violation of the rules does not automatically create a cause of action, attorneys should beware of a few scenarios in which they could face lawsuits for ethical lapses, says Brian Faughnan at Faughnan Law.

• Privacy Lessons From FTC Settlement With Chinese Toymaker

  

  In U.S. v. Apitor Technology, the Federal Trade Commission recently settled with a Chinese toy manufacturer that shared children's physical location with a third-party app provider, but the privacy lessons from the settlement extend beyond companies focusing on children's products, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

• A Shift To Semiannual Reporting May Reshape Litigation Risk

  

  While the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's proposed change from quarterly to semiannual reporting may reduce the volume of formal filings, it wouldn't reduce litigation risk, instead shifting it into less predictable terrain — where informal disclosures, timing ambiguities and broader materiality debates will dominate, says Pavithra Kumar at Advanced Analytical Consulting Group.

• CFIUS Trends May Shift Under 'America First' Policy

  

  The arrival of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States' latest annual report suggests that the Trump administration's "America First" policy will have a measurable effect on foreign investment, including improved trendlines for investments from allied sources and increasingly negative trendlines for those from foreign adversary sources, say attorneys at Debevoise.

• How Gov't May Use FARA To Target 'Domestic Terrorism'

  

  After the Trump administration’s recent memo directing law enforcement to use the Foreign Agents Registration Act to prosecute domestic terrorism, nonprofit organizations receiving funding from foreign sources must assess their registration obligations under the statute, say attorneys at Pillsbury.

• What's Changing For Cos. In New Calif. Hazardous Waste Plan

  

  While the latest hazardous waste management plan from California's Department of Toxic Substances Control still awaits final approval, companies can begin aligning internal systems now with the plan's new requirements for environmental justice, waste and disposal reduction, waste criteria, and capacity planning, says Thierry Montoya at Frost Brown.

• What CFTC Push For Tokenized Collateral Means For Crypto

  

  The Commodity Futures Trading Commission's recent request for comment on the use of tokenized products as collateral in derivatives markets signals that it is expanding the scope and form of eligible collateral, and could broaden the potential use cases for crypto-assets held in tokenized form, say attorneys at Dechert.

• H-1B Fee Guidance Is Helpful But Notable Uncertainty Persists

  

  Recent guidance narrowing the scope of the $100,000 entry fee for H-1B visas will allow employers to plan for the hiring season, but a lack of detail about the mechanics of cross-agency payment verification, fee exemptions and other practical matters still need to be addressed, say attorneys at Klasko Immigration Law Partners.

• Navigating EPA Compliance As Gov't Shutdown Continues

  

  As the federal government shutdown drags on, industries regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency can expect application and permitting delays, limited guidance from EPA personnel regarding compliance matters, and stalled court proceedings — but there are strategies that can help companies deal with these problems, says Lauren Behan at Goldberg Segalla.

• Justices' LabCorp Punt Leaves Deeper Class Cert. Circuit Split

  

  In its ruling in LabCorp v. Davis, the U.S. Supreme Court left unresolved a standing-related class certification issue that has plagued class action jurisprudence for years — and subsequent conflicting decisions among federal circuit courts have left district courts and litigants struggling with conflicting and uncertain standards, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

• Indiana Law Sets New Standard For Wage Access Providers

  

  The recent enactment of a law establishing a comprehensive regulatory framework for earned wage access positions Indiana as one of the leading states to allow EWA services, and establishes a standard that employers must familiarize themselves with before the Jan. 1 effective date, say attorneys at Faegre Drinker.